India has successfully launched its heaviest commercial communications satellite to a low earth orbit.
The Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) LVM3 ‘Baahubali’ rocket launched the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite of US-based AST SpaceMobile from Sriharikota in southern India.
“LVM3-M6 successfully and precisely injected the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite in the intended orbit,” ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan said on Wednesday.
“We are strengthening the foundations for future missions such as Gaganyaan, expanding commercial launch services and deepening global partnerships,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X. “This increased capability and boost to self-reliance are wonderful for the coming generations.”
The mission was undertaken as part of the commercial agreement signed between NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL), a commercial arm of ISRO, and AST SpaceMobile, NDTV reported.
The ‘Baahubali’ rocket lifted off at 8:55am local time on Wednesday.
The BlueBird Block-2 got separated from the rocket after 15 minutes and reached its intended orbit.
This is the heaviest payload carried by an Indian launcher.
The aim of the communications satellite is to beam broadband from space to ordinary smartphones without any special gear.
The mission marks the sixth operational flight of LVM3, which has successfully launched Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3, and two OneWeb missions carrying 72 satellites. The previous launch of LVM3 was the LVM3-M5/CMS-03 mission on November 2.
The ISRO aims to triple its annual spacecraft production over the next three years and increase the global share of the country’s space industry from the current 2% to 8% by 2030.